U.S. and Russia Had ‘Productive’ Discussions About Ukraine Stop-Fireplace, Trump Says

President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Friday insisted that Ukraine order a few of its forces to give up to Russia, a putting demand made hours after President Trump stated the US had “excellent and productive” discussions with Mr. Putin a few potential cease-fire in Ukraine.

Mr. Putin’s televised feedback got here shortly after Mr. Trump, on social media, stated he had urged the Russian chief to spare the lives of Ukrainian troopers struggling to carry on to a patch of land within the Kursk area of Russia.

“I’ve strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared,” Mr. Trump wrote.

Each presidents claimed on Friday that Ukrainian forces had been surrounded in Kursk, the realm the place Kyiv’s troops shocked Russia with a cross-border incursion final summer season. Unbiased analysts have challenged these claims, and Ukraine’s army on Friday once more rejected them.

Nonetheless, Russian forces have of late had the higher hand within the combating in Kursk. And Mr. Putin stated that for Mr. Trump’s name “to be successfully carried out,” the leaders of Ukraine wanted to order “its army models to put down their arms and give up.” Neither man has raised the concept of Russian troops on Ukrainian land surrendering.

Battles have been raging in Kursk as Moscow’s forces push to drive Ukrainian troops from the land they seized over the summer season. Russian troops have superior in current days, with Mr. Putin urging them to complete the job “within the shortest doable time.”

What occurs subsequent in Kursk has turn out to be a key level of competition forward of a possible cease-fire. Mr. Putin had on Thursday recommended much less explicitly that he wished Ukraine to order its troopers there to give up as a part of any deal to finish the struggle, which has killed greater than 1,000,000 troopers and numerous civilians over three years of grinding combating.